


A Coat of Glistening Dirt

by timahina



Series: Arc-V Rare Pair Week 2018 [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Universe, Arc V Rare Pair Week, Ball AU, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-08
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2019-06-07 03:14:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15209648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timahina/pseuds/timahina
Summary: Prince Reiji was forced to dance with every eligible noblewoman in the prospect of marriage… too bad it was a servant girl that caught his eye.





	A Coat of Glistening Dirt

_By Royal Decree of His Majesty, King Leo Akaba and Her Majesty, Queen Himika Akaba, you are invited to the Summer’s Eve Ball!_

The royal invitation was delivered across the lands as the guise of celebrating the summer solstice. Every prestigious family with an eligible maiden in the empire was presented with an invitation to celebrate the occasion. But Prince Reiji was no fool. He saw the ruse for what it was. They were terrible at hiding it. This entire party was just an elaborate game of ‘choose your own bride’ with him as the player and one of many maidens filling the grand hall as the lucky winner.

Each woman was presented to him and he was obliged to dance with them. He could practically feel the Queen’s eyes burning into his back, eager for his approval of the woman in front of him. Both her and the King were awaiting the moment he took his partner’s hand and decided this was the woman to stay at his side. Not only them but each person in the ball had waited with baited breath to study every facial twitch.

Every glance, if desire enflamed them.

Every placement of his hands when dancing, if longing urged him.

Whether his smile lingered, if love had ensnared his royal heart.

But the joke was on all of them!

Reiji hadn’t a care for a single one of his partners. To him, this entire ball was nothing more than a sham and he would prove it – that he was no prize to be dangled to anyone! Not to any greedy and prideful gold-digger who saw nothing but his Princely garments and prestige. He was not to play their game, especially not tonight. Under all the glittering lights, Reiji could see all. Every woman he was forced to dance with – he could see it in their eyes, the desperation and greed overtaking them. Others had more unsavory emotions, obvious in their lust and jealousy.

He wanted to be done.

When was this done.

When the clock struck midnight, if he had not found her yet – he’d run off.

Run away and demand the party to end.

That was the deal.

Mother had promised. “If you do not find her by midnight, you have my permission to leave.”

Reiji sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. This was… incredibly tedious. He was reaching the limits of his patience but unfortunately, there was still more time left on the clock. He had to fulfill his promise… maybe some air was needed.

“Excuse me, I need a moment.” Reiji released his dance partner and swiftly turned around toward an exit to the garden. He took a deep breath, the fresh and chilly air prickling his skin. It was needed, something to clear his head. The music much calmer from a distance and his eyes were no longer strained from the glittering lights. A few more steps away… his peaceful moment was achieved.

“Oh!” His partner returned and practically jumped, startling him as she held onto his upper arms, almost studying the tense muscles of his biceps. “Perhaps, I can accompany you?” A chill ran through him and it wasn’t from the cold air. Her eyes were clouded by desire and he nearly snorted. He could easily see what she wanted – for him to press her up against the castle wall and tear the frilly dress off her, choosing her as dear love and he would be overcome with longing.

He pushed up his glasses, trying his best not to portray too much discomfort. “Forgive me, but I would like a solitary moment.”

“But, My Prince-”

“I commanded you to _go_. Or shall I eradicate all forms of politeness and demand my guards to remove you?” Reiji considered himself a patient man; calm and collected. But he also knew his limit with people and tonight, it broke hours ago. He was in no mood to tolerate any sort of tomfoolery. The woman, in the presence of his cold eyes reluctantly released him from her grip and slowly walked backwards – waiting for the Prince to call for her again.

He did not.

In another moment, she was gone and once more – Reiji found himself alone and he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. It was another two hours. Maybe. He didn’t know if he could last.

He straightened up his suit and began a little stroll around the garden. Mother had once again spared no expense; he couldn’t help but laugh at how much the atmosphere resembled a fairy tale setting. The fountain fully lit and functional, statues of a winged cupid that were definitely not there before and roses galore.

The sound of a pot and a string of curses broke his calm and he turned around, seeing a woman with a panicked expression. She was picking up the dirt from the broken pot and putting into other pots around her. Reiji watched her and became… interested.

This wasn’t a guest at the ball, she was dressed in rags. Not a bit of make-up dolled up on her face. Was she a servant in the castle? If so, why was she out here? All servants in attendance had to be properly dressed and serving the guests. Reiji sighed. It was pointless to continue to watch and have her keep working when it was the off-hours. Plus if he got his hands a little dirty, maybe the other women would be more reluctant to touch him lest the dirt rub off.

“Are you hurt?” Reiji asked as he approached her, bending down and holding his hand out toward her.

The girl looked up, her amber eyes bright and locked in with his own. “Your Highness!” Immediately, she bowed her head back down and her short hair bounced from her sudden movement. “Forgive me, I-I… I hadn’t meant to break this! It was just… I will pay for the damages from my wages, I promise.” The girl continued to ramble, each word was becoming more incoherent than the next.

He didn’t care that she broke the pot, that made a little difference with him. “Are you doing late-night gardening?”

“… no, that wasn’t my intention.” She grumbled, the tips of her ears turning a tinge of pink – he wondered if her cheeks were the same shade or even redder, matching the roses around them.

“Oh?” Reiji cocked his head to the side and placed two fingers under her chin, lifting her head up. “Then why are you here?” The girl was reluctant, while her head no longer hung low – her cheeks as red as he imagined though from fear of the broken pot or shame of discovery, he didn’t know; but her eyes had strayed away. She was avoiding this. “What is your name?”

“… Rin.”

“Answer me, Rin. Why are you here and not inside like the other servants?”

“… I’m not allowed. None of the female servants are.”

That took him aback. He hadn’t known his parents made that a rule – it seemed ridiculous. Did they perceive any woman not of class a threat? He thought back to the party and how every member of staff attending the guests were all male servants. It seemed so arbitrary for his parents to declare that. But if they did make that an order and all servants were meant to follow that order and yet there she was… he hadn’t known there were any rule-breakers on staff. That made this curious little meeting all the more interesting to him. “… so you’re… disobeying an order?”

It was then, she stood up and ran as fast as she could. Reiji was dumbfounded for a moment before standing up and chasing after her. She didn’t get far, merely rounding the corner and hiding behind a shed, holding onto a hoe as a means of a threat.

An _empty_ threat as Reiji knew she wouldn’t risk death for this… probably.

Actually, that was a gamble. A gamble worth taking.

“I just wanted to watch!” Rin blurted out, taking a step back and holding the hoe out in front of her. Again, she avoided eye-contact with the Prince. “Everyone looked so nice and pretty… I just… wanted to know what it was like.” The bright lights and entrancing music and beautiful ball gowns… Rin wanted to see a party with her own eyes and pretend, if just for a moment that she was in the middle of it. Imagine herself as gorging herself on rich food and fine wine, laughing and dancing the night away. But it was a fantasy.

Just an idle fantasy broken by the sound of a pot.

“Overrated.”

Rin’s face practically dropped, and it was the first instance she purposefully locked eyes with him. There was something entrancing and warm about her eyes… Reiji couldn’t help but be stilled by them. “Maybe to _you_ these are probably a dime of dozen to you. I’ve…” It was her first year at the castle as a servant. Everything was colorful and new to her.

“They lose their charm, to be honest.”

“… is that why you’re out here, pestering the help instead of enjoying your party?”

Reiji snorted. She had a mouth on her. “Parties are less fun when you’re the center of attention.”

“I wouldn’t know.”

Reiji was ready to reply with a sarcastic reply; of course she wouldn’t. She was a servant, meant to fade away to the background. He too was a servant, just one of the crown – more of a puppet than anything else. He’d gladly switch places with her. “Come, let me prove it to you.” Reiji stepped forward. He was within arm’s reach and Rin immediately moved her arms, the hoe coming down to smack him on the shoulder. She had moved so fast and Reiji hardly had time to dodge, getting hit by the hoe and falling over to his side – knocking the wind out of him as Rin shrieked.

Reiji learned a valuable lesson; gambling was a dangerous game.

“Oh!” She put the hoe down and rushed to his side, her hands shaking. “Are you alright, Your Highness?”

“… that’s a thing to ask after assaulting me.” He coughed as pain shot up his side and he slowly pushed himself up, clinging onto her arms for balance.

“Well… you shouldn’t have startled me.”

She had a point. Servant girl Rin had given him a more interesting time in the short few minutes than he had dancing for half the night. “You’re right, I apologize.” He saw the smile she gave him, and he wasn’t even irritated by the fact that a servant girl of all people had scolded him. Even his own tutors had never done such an action – then again, he never been smacked with a gardening tool either. “And for your apology,” Reiji slowly stood back up to his feet, still clutching onto Rin’s arms – his grip loosening somewhat, “I demand you accompany me back to the ball.”

“Your Highness, forgive my bluntness but… did you hit your royal head on the way down?” Rin reached up, placing her hand on his forehead and placed her other hand on her own head – comparing their temperatures. When it seemed of normal degrees, she moved on further up his head, trying to examine any big bumps or open wounds where he was losing blood, causing him to suggest such a ludicrous action.

“I’m serious. I said I’d prove to you the center of attention isn’t as glamorous as it appears from a window pane.”

He pulled on her arm, but Rin planted her feet firmly on the ground. “… I’m not dressed for it. I don’t want to be the center of attention for that reason.” An ordinary servant girl, dressed in rags and dirt all over her hands dancing with the Prince and intruding on their glittering lights?

At best, she’d be kicked out – she didn’t want to think of the worst-case scenario.

Reiji didn’t understand; not until he saw her gaze cast downward and he looked at her clothes. Her messy hair. The fact at how much of a servant she was… Reiji sighed, releasing her arms from his grip. “Very well, I suppose you’ll have to take my word for it instead.” It was fun while it lasted – an easy distraction allowing him to forget the demands of the inside. She did manage to surprise him.

As he turned around, Rin could only watch his back and how his coat had some loose debris and mild dirt stains from falling over as he did. Even an imprint of a hoe on the side of it. If he went back to the party like that… “Wait!” Rin called out for him and ran after him, her hand reaching out and gripping onto his jacket.

His back tensed at feeling his jacket crease tighter on the back, a sign from how she was holding onto him. Was this her way of changing her mind?

“Um… your coat’s dirty.”

Reiji nodded. “Yes, that’s a side-effect of falling on the dirt.”

“You can’t go back looking like that! They’ll…”

“What, gossip? The boat for that has sailed long ago. But… if you are so worried about that…” Reiji turned briefly, unbuttoning the dress coat and having it slide down his arms before placing it over Rin’s shoulders. “Here, you take it.”

“But I-”

“It matches your attire more than mine.”

She pouted – a snide dig at her haggard appearance. But… but it was warm and she hadn’t realized how cold the night really was. She watched him again, his back getting farther away from her till he rounded the corner back inside. Rin fell to her knees, holding tightly onto the Prince’s coat.

Being the center of attention… even just Prince Reiji’s attention, that was not an overrated experience. Even just having his eyes on her… She sat up, properly putting the coat on and buttoning it. It was long on her, both with the sleeves and in length.

Maybe she’d give him that dance now that her clothes were better.

**Author's Note:**

> I originally meant to make this a Cinderella AU but that didn't... exactly work out lol


End file.
